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Paratutae Island, also known as Paratūtai Island, is an island off New Zealand at the mouth of the Manukau Harbour, at Whatipu in the Waitākere Ranges area.
Native name: Motu Paratūtai | |
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| Geography | |
| Location | Auckland |
| Coordinates | 37°02′46″S 174°30′29″E |
| Adjacent to | Manukau Harbour, Tasman Sea |
| Highest elevation | 13 m (43 ft) |
| Administration | |
New Zealand | |
The island is a portion of a Miocene era volcanic dyke swarm.[1]
In Te Kawerau ā Maki oral histories, the island was visited by the Polynesian navigator Kupe. A section of the island is known by the name Te Hoe-a-Kupe ("The Paddle of Kupe"), referring to the location where Kupe struck his paddle against the island, to commemorate his visit.[2][3] The island was the location of a Te Kawerau ā Maki defensive pā, guarding the entrance to the Manukau Harbour.[4] Around the year 1700, the pā was captured by Kawharu, the famed Tainui warrior who led Ngāti Whātua warriors to take the Waitākere Ranges area.[4] The island is one of the few locations where pre-European Māori textiles have been found, during an archaeological survey in the early 1900s.[5]
The etymology of the island's name is contested. Many attest that the word is a corruption of Paratūtai, referring to the rise and fall of the tides at the Manukau Bar,[2][3] while a separate traditional story involves a chief visiting the island and developing diarrhoea after eating too much para fern root (Ptisana salicina),[6][2] The rocky sections of Whatipu, Motu Paratūtai, Te Toka Tapu ā Kupe / Ninepin Rock and Te Marotiri ō Takamiro (Cutter Rock) were collectively known as Te Kupenga ā Taramainuku, or "The Fishing Net of Taramainuku".[3]
A signal mast was installed on the island in the 1850s, in order to improve safety for ships entering the Manukau Harbour.[7] In November 1863 during the Invasion of the Waikato, a Waikato raiding party climbed the island and cut down the signal mast.[7] In the latter 19th century, a wharf was constructed on the north-east side of the island.[7] Waitākere Ranges kauri timber would transported to the Whatipu sawmill and the wharf by tramway.[7] The wharf was used until 1921, and was demolished in 1950.[7]
While originally an island separated from the mainland, the sandbank at Whatipu gradually accumulated during the late 20th century to form a tombolo, so that by 1989 Paratutae had become a tied island.[7]
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